Whip Kevin McCarthy: Secretary Chu needs to scoot

posted at 8:30 pm on November 18, 2011 by Tina Korbe

In congressional testimony yesterday, Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu claimed he had no idea how shaky Solyndra was — nor the solar industry, in general. He pushed a $535 million loan to the company because he thought it would create jobs and displace oil, he said. Much of that testimony wasn’t exactly accurate. The White House had plenty of warning about the solar industry collapse — and the job creation claim was always sketchy.

But even if every single word Chu spoke was true, his testimony does little to shore up confidence in his decision-making skills. (Nor does the fact that he’s still firm in his commitment to investment in solar energy, as evidenced by his trip today to a solar energy facility in Colorado.) So, it’s really no surprise that at least a couple of politicians have begun to call for his ouster. Scribe’s Lachlan Markay reports:

House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) on Friday said Energy Secretary Steven Chu’s lack of knowledge about the problems plaguing now-bankrupt Solyndra demonstrates poor management skills that preclude him from being an effective Cabinet-level official.

“I would look to have somebody else manage” the Department of Energy, McCarthy said on a Friday conference call. “Things were going on that he did not know about,” he added. “That’s not the way you should be managing.”

Those comments echo remarks by the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s lead investigator. Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL) said Thursday that Chu should be replaced.

“I think the secretary is unaware of so many things that have happened that would question his financial ability and his management of very complex corporations,” Stearns said. “He probably should be replaced by the president,” he added.

Given the way the president has responded to the resounding chorus of calls for Eric Holder’s resignation, it’s doubtful he’ll replace Chu. Then again, while Chu didn’t admit to improper motives for the loan to Solyndra, he did take full responsibility for approving it. That’s far more than Eric Holder has done with the Fast and Furious scandal. Instead, Holder has stuck to the line that he didn’t know about the controversial gunwalking tactics an agency within his own department employed.

Either way, it all redounds to Obama’s discredit. He sure does know how to pick ‘em.

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If you want to see why,Team Right,has opening Statements,followed
by Democrat,who uses her statement,of Liberal CYA,with “Nostrils”
Waxman,going on about “Wasting Time”,and would be more productive to get thses Green Companies going to create jobs and stop wasting
all the valuable time on the hearing,and thats in the first 15 Minutes to boot!!

Energy Secretary Steven Chu takes questions from House Oversight Committee lawmakers on his role in the federal loan guarantee made to the solar energy company Solyndra.

Sec. Chu told the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations that there was no political pressure from the White House on the decision to loan over half a million dollars to Solyndra – a company that went bankrupt in September of this year. Sec. Chu said he regretted the company’s failure, but stressed the importance of investing in new energy sources.

Energy Committee Republicans began looking into the Solyndra loan earlier this year. This summer, the committee subpoenaed documents from the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which was responsible for reviewing the risks of providing Solyndra the guarantee, which was part of the president’s economic stimulus.

Solyndra Inc. received a $535 million government loan but laid off 1,100 workers and filed for bankrupt

By definition, as WSJ observed, Chu Chu has been funding companies which have not been able to attract private capital in adequate amounts because their economics are fraudulent or so iffy nobody would invest their own money…making a return on such risk is not feasible, if you’re accountable for making investments with a positive return..

Chu Chu proudly noted he has a $34B “portfolio” (his word), which has to make him one of the biggest venture capitalist investors in the US. Wow, what a step from a physics lab, and without having to do all that grotty time in trenches, learning about how businesses function and succeed/fail.

The European technocrat disease has crossed the pond, primarily due to Obama and his own studied ignorance, making sure to hire people less intelligent than himself, to preserve his self image.

Chu should be sharing a cell with Jon Corzine, but I suspect it won’t happen. He’ll get a federal pension instead.

Notice also the quality of his suit. Far cry from his initial appearance, isn’t it. I think he really likes being part of the 1%.

If Obama fires Chu, he won’t be invited to next year’s Nobel laureate picnic. Now with Al Gore, Paul Krugman, and Steven Chu all in attendance, what will they talk about without Obama there to suggest topics read from his teleprompter?